


smells like coffee beans & feelings

by kinneyb



Category: The Magicians (TV)
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-06-29
Updated: 2019-06-29
Packaged: 2020-05-30 15:52:05
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,639
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19406491
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kinneyb/pseuds/kinneyb
Summary: Eliot works at a coffee shop with his best friend Margo, and he might possibly have a crush on their new regular.





	smells like coffee beans & feelings

**Author's Note:**

> ★ please follow me on twitter @ queermight & check out my pinned tweet! ★

The first time Eliot saw him, he had one pretty simple thought: _cute_. 

The guy was cute and oddly stout for someone so mousy, who stayed in a corner of the coffee shop and avoided social interaction as much as possible. He had long, messy hair he usually tied back and wore glasses Eliot suspected he only used to hide his face more.

Eliot prided himself in being a bit of an enigma, if you will. But Margo always saw through him. She was the only person who saw through him.

“You think the newbie is cute,” she commented, casual as ever, as she finished up an order for one of their regulars. 

Eliot would’ve said “ _no, of course not_ ” if it was anyone but Margo. Lying to Margo was pointless, and usually just pissed her off. “He is, isn’t he?” he replied, shrugging lightly. 

She hummed thoughtfully and leaned up on her toes, peeking over the machine in front of her. She lowered herself again and grinned at Eliot, eyes sparkling. “He’s not _that_ cute.”

“Well, good,” he muttered, nudging her with his elbow. “That means you won’t steal this one before I get a chance, maybe.”

Margo barked out a laugh and walked away to deliver the order.

++

Newbie quickly became a regular, showing up every other day to study. Or something; he always had his head in a book, at least. Eliot learned, as you do, that his name was Quentin but after the first few times, he ended up mostly going by Q, saying it was easier to write on a cup.

Eliot agreed. Also, it was just a nice nickname. Easy.

Margo teased him relentlessly, eyes wide and sparkling every time. But at the end of each day, she would soften and sober up a bit.

“If you think he’s cute, why haven’t you tried flirting with him, like, at all?”

Eliot shrugged, cleaning the counter with a bit more force then necessary. “You’ve talked to him, Bambi,” he replied after a moment. “He can’t even get through a sentence without stuttering. I don’t want to overwhelm the poor thing.”

“But maybe that’s _exactly_ what he needs,” she said breezily.

Eliot didn’t know if she was right, but he was getting tired of waiting. Pursing his lips, he finished cleaning the counter and kissed her on the top of the head. “Thank you,” he muttered.

She patted his back, peering up at him through her eyelashes. “Anytime. Besides, it’s been way too long - you _really_ need to get laid.”

++

So next time Q visited, Eliot had a clear cut mission in mind: get his number. 

Q walked up to the counter, clinging to his large messenger bag, and Margo didn’t even try to assist him. She obviously was tired of waiting too. Eliot bit back a grin as he approached the counter.

“Hi,” he greeted, friendly but not too friendly. Balance was key.

Q blinked up at him for just a second before quickly looking away. “H - hi. Um. J - just the regular, please.”

Eliot’s heart did flips. God, he was so fucking cute. “Of course.” He looked over at Margo and nodded his head, and she turned away to start making his order. He looked back at Q. “So.”

The guy startled like a mouse. “Yes?” he squeaked.

Eliot was admittedly not used to flirting with someone like this. Usually the guys he found were at clubs and open and confident, just like him. It’s not that he strictly preferred that type - they were just easier to catch and sinks his claws into. “You like reading?” he asked, nodding at his bag.

Q blinked a few times before nodding. “Uh. Uh, yeah. A lot.”

“Are you in school?” Eliot asked, tilting his head curiously. A curl fell in his eyes, and from the way Q glanced up and licked his lips he probably noticed. Okay, at least this meant the guy probably wasn’t straight.

Q nodded once, clutching the strap of his bag tightly. “D - do you?” he shuffled his feet. “Like reading, I mean.”

Eliot made a face. Lying would be easier, but... lying only worked if you wanted a quick fling. And Eliot didn’t think he was ready to think about the fact he obviously did not want just that with Q right now. Sober, at least. “Honestly, not really,” he admitted but then, “maybe you could give me a few suggestions.”

“Oh.” Q flushed, looking away. “Sure.”

After that, Q got his coffee and walked back to his usual table. Eliot watched him for a moment and seeing the smile on his face made him feel weirdly giddy.

“You’re so fucking whipped,” Margo singsonged, throwing a napkin at him.

++

The next time they talked, Eliot had an idea. “Do you need glasses?”

Q looked up and blinked, eyes owlishly wide. “Um... that’s - “ 

“Sorry,” Eliot interrupted, smiling slightly. “If you don’t want to answer, I get it.” 

Q licked his lips, and Eliot promptly ignored the way his brain jumped to a few very inappropriate thoughts. “I... I don’t,” he admitted, sniffing. “I just - I wore them once, and I thought... I kind of like, um, having them.”

“They’re like a shield?” Eliot asked, even if he probably already knew the answer. “That protects you from the rest of the world?”

Q blinked once and smiled a bit sheepishly. “Yeah, kind of.”

Now for the winning shot. Eliot cleared his throat and shrugged. “I understand, I do.” He smiled at Q, wide and sincere. “And do what makes you comfortable, but... it is a bit of a shame because you have _really_ pretty eyes.”

Eliot could see Q short circuiting. 

“Oh. _Oh_. Um.” He swallowed thickly, red in the face. “Th - thank you?”

Eliot tilted his head and only smiled wider. “Anytime, sweetheart.”

Q blushed deeper and stared at his feet, chewing on his bottom lip.

Now he played the waiting game. Q’s reaction would help solidify if he was really interested in Eliot or just too polite (more like shy/embarrassed) to turn him down. He was equal parts nervous and excited for the few time Q visited, which if he followed his schedule would be the day after tomorrow.

++

The next time Q showed up, his glasses were nowhere to be seen. Eliot grinned from behind the counter. Bingo, sucker.

“The grin on your face is making me ill,” Margo commented, touching a hand to her stomach, “like on a physical level.” But she grinned right after despite herself. “This isn’t your usual thing, huh?” She peered across the shop at Q, scrunching her nose. “This is like a full blown, real crush.”

Eliot shrugged, feeling pleased with himself as he made a customer’s order. He was so distracted by thoughts of Q he almost added too much whipped cream. He laughed lightly and wiped his hand off on a towel. “Hey, you’ve had crushes before too.”

Margo shook her head. “Those were dark times, Eliot.”

“Please,” he replied, grinning like a shark. “You’re telling me if the blonde with ample assets came back in, you wouldn’t drool like a dog?”

Margo scoffed, turning away. But she didn’t dignify him with an answer, which probably meant he was correct. 

Once he finished the order, he handed the cup to Margo. “Deliver this for me?” he asked, pouting. 

She rolled her eyes. “I don’t know what you’re planning, but go on.”

Eliot grinned toothily and grabbed a cookie, stuffing it in one of their little paper bags before sauntering to the back of the shop. Q didn’t look up until he was literally right in front of his table and when he did he startled a bit, closing his book. 

“Hi,” Eliot greeted. He glanced at the empty chair across from Q. “You mind?”

Q quickly shook his head, gesturing at the chair. “No. Please, um.”

Sitting down, he placed the paper bag on the table and pushed it across the table to Q. “You like cookies, right?” he asked, eyes sparkling. If he didn’t, maybe he needed to call this whole thing off. Eliot’s motto: never trust a person who doesn’t like cookies.

Q smiled warmly and accepted the gift. “I - I do. Thank you. I’ll, um - “ he reached inside his bag, but Eliot quickly stopped him.

“No, no.” When Q looked at him, confused, he just smiled. “It’s on me.”

Q nodded slowly, biting his bottom lip. 

“Actually, uh - “ Eliot laughed; now _he_ was the one stuttering. He ran his fingers through his hair. “This might be a bit forward - “ is it, though? Haven’t they been flirting for a couple weeks now? Or maybe Eliot truly had read Q’s signals all wrong and he really was straight. But it was too late to back out now. “But do you want to go out sometime?”

Q blinked once and laughed sharply, quickly covering his mouth with an embarrassed squeak. “Sorry,” he muttered, slowly removing his hands. “I just - I - wow. Julia was right.” He smiled a bit. “She’s gonna be insufferable.”

Eliot smiled, furring his brows. “Julia?”

“I - “ Q threw both hands in the air. “It’s nothing weird. I - I think?” he scratched his cheek. “Julia is my best friend, and... I might’ve told her, uh, about you.” He took a shallow breath and looked down. “Or - or about my crush on an employee at a coffee shop, at least.”

Eliot bit his lip, suppressing a grin. “Pray tell, Q... do you have a crush on me?”

“Maybe,” he squeaked, blushing up to his ears.

Eliot wanted to tease him more and maybe see if that blush extended downward too, but there would (hopefully) be time for that later. Shifting, he fished his phone out of his pocket and added a new contact under _Q_. “So what’s your number?”


End file.
